


if you could take my pulse right now

by seren_ccd



Category: Black Sails
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:07:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23745034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seren_ccd/pseuds/seren_ccd
Summary: Forensic accountant Abigail Ashe loves working with Detective Sergeant Billy Bones. If only her crush on him wasn't so damn distracting. UST to RST. Very AU!
Relationships: Abigail Ashe/Billy Bones
Comments: 25
Kudos: 56





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on a prompt from restingnurseface for some Abigail/Billy sexytimes! Um, so this first part is not the sexytimes. But they're on the way! I promise! Lyrics are from Fifth Harmony's 'Sledgehammer', because why not! Also, this is a direct result of watching far too much 'Silent Witness' recently.

Abigail rubbed her forehead. It was there, she knew it. The money had to come from somewhere and she was going to find it. She tried another search and started tracing the funds back to the source.

A knock on the door startled her into looking up. She met DS Bones’ kind, blue eyes and small smile.

“Time’s up, Ashe, let’s go,” he said jerking his head towards the door.

“Oh, is it?” Abigail looked at her watch. 9:55 pm. “Blimey, I’m sorry. So it is.”

“And I’d like it to go on record that we originally said 9:30 and that I’ve actually given you an extra twenty-five minutes,” he said rocking back on his heels, shoving his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket.

“So noted,” she said smiling as she set up a few searches on her laptop that she’d start running once she got home. “And I’d also like to state for the record that I don’t believe that I’m in any danger and the babysitting can stop.” She looked at him and shook her head. “Honestly, I do think this is a waste of your time.”

“Your department is currently assisting ours in an investigation into the Guthrie-Rogers family and you along with several of your colleagues have received direct threats from their partners,” he replied. “You may not take that seriously, but we do. You’re stuck with us, Ashe.”

Abigail sighed as she grabbed her satchel and coat. “More like you’re stuck with us. I’m sure you have much better things to do with your time than sit outside my flat while I eat leftover takeaway and sleep. Wouldn’t a patrolman be better suited to this? You’ve been in interrogation all day.”

He shrugged and, not for the first time, Abigail was once again reminded at just how very tall and broad Detective Sergeant William ‘Billy’ Bones was compared to her. She herself was quite petite and her sensible flats that went with her tights and floral dress did nothing to compensate for it. 

“We could set up a patrolman, but they don’t who to look for,” he said guiding her out of her office. “My team does. And who says I’m going to be sat outside?”

“You did hear me mention the leftover takeaway?” she said as they headed down the hall. “I haven’t had time to go to the shops this week. Too much data to sift through.”

“So we’ll grab something on the way,” he said and Abigail told the butterflies in her stomach to settle down and behave. 

Dear God, her crush on the man was incredibly inconvenient. Never mind that they were in the midst of an investigation that had the potential to become the making of them all, as well as expose years of upon years of smuggling and corruption in some of the wealthiest and influential families in Britain. But for the first time, Abigail’s skills were being taken seriously and she was bound and determined to remain completely and totally professional despite the fact that even though the man had been inside interrogation rooms all day, he still managed to smell faintly of sandalwood.

But dear heavens, if the man didn’t stop gently guiding her through doors with his hand resting lightly on her lower back…

She breathed in deep and told herself to chill.

Of course, it also didn’t help that Billy Bones was so damn nice to her. Not once had she had to put up with the usual round of sexism from him, or his DI. Inspector Gates was as nice as they came and had clearly instructed his DS in how to treat people. She rather enjoyed working with the two men and noticed that her boss, Dr. Hamilton, had begun to assign Abigail to Gates and Bones more often than not.

If Abigail didn’t know any better, she’d assume that Miranda had something up her sleeve.

What was she thinking? Of course, Miranda had something up her sleeve. The woman was always five steps ahead of everyone else.

Abigail resolved to endure the next few hours until she could escape to her bedroom for some much needed rest. She’d eat takeaway with the man and laugh at his jokes and listen avidly to his stories and if she had to remind herself every thirty seconds that theirs was a professional relationship, well, that was what she was going to have to do, damn it.

Billy put his hand on her lower back again as they headed out to his car and then made sure to open Abigail’s door for her.

Shite.

The evening was going to be interminable.

* * *

Less than an hour later, Abigail absently ate her biryani as she ran search after search. Billy had seated himself on her sofa and was talking away with DI Gates as they went over the day’s interrogations. He’d managed to put away an entire serving of chicken tikka marsala and was steadily working on the naan.

He hung up and sighed. “I swear. Gates needs a holiday.”

“Think he’d ever take one?” Abigail asked. 

“Not unless it was prescribed to him by a doctor and even then, I think he’d argue,” Billy said. “The man needs a hobby.”

“Do you have a hobby?” Abigail asked glancing at him.

He paused. “Does work count?”

“Nope.”

“Then no, I don’t.” He tilted his head to the side. “Maybe I need a hobby.”

Abigail smiled and checked the programme on her laptop.

“What do you have running?” he asked around a mouthful of naan.

“A few searches,” she said. “We know that the money is being moved around, but they’re very good about being as random about the dates and the amounts as they can. Which makes it difficult to see a pattern. So, on a bit of a whim, I’ve set up a search to look for amounts that match important dates in the family history. Birthdays, date of deaths, marriages, things like that. It’s probably a long shot, but people get careless and patterns are everywhere.”

“Try court dates.”

She looked at him. “Court dates?”

“They seem to take it as a personal affront when they’ve been caught in the past,” he said grabbing his beer. “Even for the small things. They lawyer up fast and come at you, guns blazing. It’s a pride thing.” He pointed to her laptop with his beer bottle. “Court dates.”

“Court dates it is,” she said typing in the new parameters and setting her search programme off and running once more. “Good thinking. That would never have occurred to me.”

“Sure it would have,” he said. “I just happened to have spent the day in a small room with their lawyers today and they’re on my mind. You’re, uh, really good, you know. At what you do.”

Abigail looked up from her laptop, eyes wide. “Oh, thank you?”

He looked away and started to gather their plates. “Yeah, just thought I’d tell you. Don’t know what we would’ve done without you these last few weeks.”

“You’d managed,” she said getting up and going to her fridge, terribly unsure of how to react to his flattery. She pulled out a small tub of mango slices. “My colleagues are very talented, too. I’m sure that Jack or Max would have assisted you.”

“Yeah, but they aren’t you,” he said.

Abigail froze, the plastic lid of the tub halfway off. “They aren’t?”

“No,” he said and the serious, warm tone of his voice had her looking up to meet his eyes. “They don’t come close, Abigail.”

The lid to the mangos clattered on the counter.

“Thank you?” she whispered.

“You’re welcome,” he said before he glanced down. “You like mangos?”

“Love them,” she said faintly. “Especially after a curry.”

“Got any lime?”

She blinked. “Yes?”

“Grab one,” he said grinning.

Darting a suspicious look at him, she grabbed a lime from her fridge and handed it to him.

“Got a knife?”

Her eyes narrowed at him while he just grinned, but she got a knife and a cutting board out.

He deftly sliced the lime into quarters and squeezed the juice onto the mango slices. “Try it.”

Abigail picked up a slice and popped it in her mouth. She chewed and giggled, covering her mouth. After swallowing, she said, “Oh, that’s nice! Where’d you learn that?”

Billy finished eating his own slice and said, “M & S.”

She laughed.

“What? They add the lime to their fruit packs in the meal deal,” he said popping another slice in his mouth. “It’s good.”

He winked at her and Abigail giggled covering her mouth. She finished her mango before saying, “You know I had my suspicions that you had a sense of humor and well, fun. I’m glad to see I was right.”

“Don’t know that I’ve been called fun before,” he said grinning a little. “And I’ve definitely been told to get a sense of humor in the past.”

“Well, you have a serious job. It’s hardly a laugh riot around the office,” Abigail said. 

“Yeah, but still.” He shrugged. “Gates is funny, but I think that’s just his nature.” He looked at Abigail. “You, on the other hand, I suspect you have a capacity for being wild.”

Abigail’s eyes widened. “’Wild’? Me? Hardly. I’m as staid as they come. I’m an accountant for heaven’s sake.”

“You’re a _forensic_ accountant,” he said. “Which means you prefer puzzles to simply doing people’s taxes and looking after their bottom lines. And, from what I hear, you had the opportunity to that.”

“Ah, yes,” she said frowning down at the mangos. “I’d wondered how much of that was public knowledge.”

“Not all that much,” he said. “But your name is somewhat recognizable and people know you come from money.”

Abigail made a face and stabbed a piece of mango, but didn’t eat it. “Yes, well, I suppose that makes sense.”

“No one thinks less of you because of it, you know,” he said. “The opposite, really.”

Abigail chuckled a little.

“So, let’s have it.” Billy ducked his head and caught her eyes. “What’s your story?”

Abigail stared back at him for a moment and then nodded. “Right. I need wine. Do you drink wine?”

Startled and amused, Billy nodded and said, “I’ve been known to drink wine, yeah.”

“It’s all I have,” she said opening her fridge and pulling out the lone and already opened bottle of pinot grigio. “It’s white.”

“Works for me.”

Abigail pulled wine glasses from her cupboard and poured them both a generous amount.

“Cheers,” she said holding up her glass.

“Cheers,” Billy repeated with a smirk.

They clinked glasses and drank. Abigail closed her eyes and then said, “I’ve always liked numbers. I know everyone thought that it was natural that I’d go into accounting based on the fact that our family has run their accounting firm for nearly three generations. But I truly came by my love of maths honestly. I had a brilliant maths teacher during my A levels and I just took to it.”

She took another sip of her wine, incredibly aware of just how intently Billy watched her.

“So, I headed off to uni,” she said. “And yes, before you ask, it was London School of Economics. Father wouldn’t have had me go anywhere else. If mum had been around, I might have been able to put up more of a protest, but, well, she’d just passed and to be fair, I was accepted on my own terms and not because of his, so I went.”

“How was life in the posh lane?” he asked.

“As awful as you’d expect it to be,” she said before taking another sip. “The classes were amazing and I loved every minute of them, even the ones with the poncy profs. The students I could’ve taken or left, but I made a few friends. Before I knew it, I’d graduated and was promptly installed at father’s firm. As an intern, of course.”

“Of course,” Billy said refilling her glass.

She paused and stared into her wineglass. “Are you really sure you want to hear this? I mean, it’s not that interesting.”

“I do and it is,” he said. “Keep going, Abigail. I want to see how you got from the posh offices to eating cheap takeaway with a lowly copper.”

She nearly choked on her wine. “Lowly copper, my arse. There are stories about you, you know. The fellow who rose through the ranks at lightning speed. The guy with a knack for interrogation and seeing all.”

“Seeing all?” he said raising his eyebrows. “Make me sound like Mandrake the Magician. And we’re still on you, so no changing the subject, Miss Ashe. I have a feeling we’re getting to the good stuff.”

“Fine,” she said rolling her eyes and taking a sip of wine. “I started at the bottom and was given a few people to create financial portfolios for. It was quite basic as jobs go. Boring, if I’m totally honest. Incredibly boring, if I’m brutally honest.” She made a face. “I started to hate it. Making money for people who already had more than they needed. It didn’t sit well with me.” She sighed. “But I knew that going in, so I thought I’d either get used to it or find another department to go into.” She hesitated, then continued, “Then one day I was given the opportunity to help with an audit of the company’s earnings. I found…discrepancies.”

“Shite,” Billy said wincing.

“That’s what I said,” Abigail said chuckling. “Looked like one of the higher ups was skimming off the top of some of his clients’ investments. Nothing really out of the ordinary, Christ, he wasn’t even clever about it. Anyone looking for it could find it.” She shrugged. “So, I took it to my father as I figured that since the guy was so high up the food chain, they’d feel weird about it. Spelled it out to my dad and he said, ‘Thank you very much, darling. I’ll take care of it. How wonderful to see you paying such close attention to these little details.’”

Abigail drained the rest of her wine.

“He did nothing, did he?” Billy asked quietly.

“Not a god damn thing,” Abigail said. “And the fellow doing the skimming got a promotion.” She shook her head. “That was it. I went back to my father and more or less let him have it. He’d always gone on about truth and how important it was and as far as I could tell the only person who’d lied was now being celebrated for it. I told him that I was ashamed of him and wanted no part of any of it. He told me that I was a part of the Ashe legacy and needed to fall in line.”

“And you said?” Billy asked.

Abigail met Billy’s eyes and said, “To hell with the Ashe legacy.”

Billy raised his glass to her. “Well done, Abigail Ashe. That took some guts.”

“I was lucky,” she said shaking her head. “I had a place to go and a job came soon after.” Billy looked at her quizzically. “Miranda,” Abigail said. “Dr Hamilton. She was a friend of my mother’s from way back. I left the same day and never really looked back.” She sighed. “And that’s my story.”

“It explains a few things,” he said. “It was a brave thing to do. Leaving like that.”

“Didn’t exactly feel brave, if I’m honest,” Abigail said. “I honestly felt like throwing up for nearly a month afterwards.”

“My first proper collar, I was a lowly constable, assigned to Gates, back when he worked with Captain Flint,” Billy said. “We’d cornered some blokes who we suspected of a triple homicide in Caden. Found them in a shop in Covent Garden of all places.” He shrugged. “Grabbed two of them and the third, naturally, ran. So I ran after him.” He shook his head. “I swear, the bloke had to have won medals for sprinting ‘cause he was fast. So there I was, pushing passed tourists and buskers and fucking street performers in Covent Garden on a Saturday afternoon. But I finally caught up with him and got him. But only after nearly getting mowed down by at least a dozen cyclists.”

Laughing, Abigail said, “Well done! I would have given up after the street performers.”

Billy chuckled. “I was out to prove myself, you know. So, dragged the bloke in, and on my way to interrogation, after having drunk a liter of water, I veered straight into the men’s and threw up everything I’d eaten in the last twenty-four hours.”

“Oh, dear,” Abigail said wincing. 

“Yeah,” Billy said shaking his head. “It was the adrenaline and the rush. The things we do, Abigail, we never quite know what they’re going to do to us, do we?”

“We really don’t,” she said.

“Thanks for telling me your story,” he said.

She smiled and nodded. “Thanks for wanting to hear it.”

“Been wanting to hear it for a while now,” he said taking a deep breath. “Christ, Abigail, you’re lovely, you know that, right?”

Abigail froze. Her heart pounded in her chest as she looked up into his eyes.

“What?” she asked softly.

“I said ‘you’re lovely,’” he said looking down and poking at the lime quarters on the cutting board. “I know I shouldn’t even be thinking about you like that. It’s unprofessional. I mean, it’s not against the rules since you work for the institute and not for the force, but still-“

“You looked that up?” she asked smiling a little. 

“Sorry?”

“The rules,” she said ducking her head to catch his eyes. “You looked them up?”

“Yeah, of course,” he said meeting her gaze and smiling a little, the corner of his mouth curving up. “I mean, I’m mad about you, but I’m not going to put you into a bad situation. Which I guess I’ve done anyway by saying all this.”

“You’re mad about me?” Goodness, Abigail hadn’t realised her voice could reach that high of a pitch.

Still smiling that crooked smile, Billy nodded. “Yeah. I’m mad about you, Abigail. You’re smart and kind and determined and gorgeous, and yeah, the perfect package.”

She was going to melt into the floor. It was a fact. In a few seconds she’d just be an Abigail-shaped puddle on the floor.

“Blimey,” she said softly. “I thought I was alone in this.”

Billy’s crooked smile widened. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she said smiling back. “I mean, you’re right, though, this isn’t exactly a perfect situation. We do have to work together. I’m come too far to, well, muck things up. Especially on this case.”

“You’re right,” he said nodding. “That’s why I haven’t said anything before now.” He nodded at the mangos. “Blame it on the mangos.”

Abigail laughed. “Yeah, bloody mangos.”

They stood there grinning at each other for a few moments before their grins gradually subsided. 

“So,” Abigail said looking down.

“Yeah,” Billy said softly. “Bad timing, I guess.”

Abigail nodded. “I suppose so. It’d be ridiculous to start anything. Now, I mean.”

“You’re right,” Billy said. “We’re so close to getting these people. We can’t let that stop being a priority.”

“Precisely,” Abigail said lifting her head and smiling. “And maybe, once the case is solved, we could go somewhere? A proper, um, date? Or something.”

“Yeah,” Billy said frowning. “Yeah, a proper date, yeah.”

Abigail watched as his brow furrowed and he stared down at the counter.

“Or, or not,” she said uneasily. “I mean, we don’t have-“

“I just really fucking want to kiss you right now,” he said raising his head and looking straight at her.

“Oh, thank Christ,” she said and it was all she could do to lift her head as he rounded the corner and his hands cupped her face and his mouth… Oh, dear heaven, _his mouth_.

His lips moved over hers with a gentleness that she should have expected, but hadn’t. They brushed over hers again and again until she was trembling and rising up on her tiptoes to get closer to him. His hands slid down her sides to her thighs where he lifted her up far too easily to sit on the counter. Their heads more or less level with one another, Billy’s mouth opened against hers and his tongue swept inside. Abigail moaned and curled her legs around his hips.

“God, I knew it,” he murmured against her lips. “I knew you’d taste amazing.” He lifted his head and smirked as he met her eyes. “Like mangos.”

Abigail grinned and pulled his face back to hers. They kissed until she was dizzy and surging up against him and his hips rocked into hers.

A clattering sound brought them out of it and Billy lifted his head. They stared at one another blankly, until Abigail blinked and looked at the counter behind her.

“It’s your mobile,” she said breathlessly.

“Fuck,” Billy said and reached around her to grab it. He checked the caller ID and paused. “It’s fucking Charles Vane.”

Charles Vane? As in Eleanor Guthrie’s former fiancé? The one she’d thrown over for Woodes Rogers?

“Answer it,” Abigail said, eyes wide.

Billy answered it. “Yeah.”

Abigail watched as he held a very brief conversation, all the while, Billy’s other hand remained wide and warm on her waist.

He finally hung up with a, “Yeah, I know the place. Be there in half an hour.”

Billy looked at her. “He has something on Eleanor. She must be cleaning house and has pissed him off.”

“They’ve been together for ages,” Abigail said frowning. “I never thought he’d betray her secrets.”

“You knew her, didn’t you?” Billy asked slipping his mobile into his back pocket, his hand then coming to cup Abigail’s face. “Or were friends once?”

“Not exactly friends, just grew up in a lot of the same circles,” Abigail said absently rubbing her cheek against his palm. “She’s always wanted to impress her father. She’s sought his approval since she was a child.”

“Whereas you told yours to fuck off,” Billy murmured with a grin, as he kissed the side of her neck.

Abigail gasped at the sensation of his mouth on her pulse. “Not in those, oh God, precise terms.”

“Close enough,” he said before pressing his mouth to hers for a quick kiss before he looked at her. “I have to go.”

“I know,” she said nodding. “Call Gates and I’ll change.”

“Change?”

“I’m coming with you,” she said pushing him back just enough so she could slide off the counter. “He may have insider info on their accounts and buyers. That’s where I come in.”

Billy furrowed his brow and then nodded slowly. “You’ll do everything I tell you and if I tell you get away, you’ll get away?”

“Of course,” Abigail said nearly rolling her eyes. “You know we do have some training. We work with you lot enough to need it from time to time.”

Billy studied her for a moment and then curled an arm around her waist, pulling her to him for a quick, but deeply thorough kiss.

“This happened, yeah?” he asked raising his head to look into her eyes.

“Yeah, this happened,” she said softly.

“And it’s going to happen again.” It wasn’t a question.

Abigail smiled. “Good.”

Billy nodded and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Good. Get changed, I’ll call Gates.”

Less than five minutes later (Abigail was very proud of herself for not spending the entire time changing dancing around her bedroom in glee, just the first thirty seconds.), Abigail met Billy by her front door, clad in jeans, a jumper, and well-worn trainers.

“Ready?” Billy asked giving her a very slow once over that ended with a grin.

She grinned at him. “Very.”

TO BE CONTINUED…


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!!!

The pub they were to meet Charles Vane was surprisingly tame with only mildly sticky floors. Billy led Abigail to a table towards the back, only stopping for a pint of lager for him and half a cider for her. She sipped at her cider and looked around the pub. Eventually, she felt Billy tense beside her and she looked towards the door as Vane entered.

He spotted them immediately and nodded before going to the bar.

“Remember,” Billy said under his breath. “I tell you to do something, do it. Please.”

“Thank you for remembering to say ‘please’,” she murmured back.

Billy’s lips twitched in amusement before they flattened and he leaned back as Vane came to their table.

“Bones,” Vane said before looking to Abigail. “Moneypenny.”

Abigail blinked. “Sorry?”

Vane nearly smiled. “Bones hasn’t told you about your nickname? You’re the numbers girl who learned how to work the books at your father’s knee but gave it all up for Queen and country.”

“That’s…not precisely how it went,” Abigail said frowning. 

“’Course it isn’t,” Vane said after taking a drink of his pint. “But that’s never the point of a good story.”

“And what’s your story today, Vane?” Billy asked, still reclining, his arm outstretched behind Abigail and she could feel the tension in his thigh where it pressed against hers. “The wronged, innocent boyfriend seeking revenge against his upper class ex-girlfriend?”

“If I said ‘yes’, would it make my information more or less useful to you?” Vane asked, tilting his head to the side. 

“I honestly don’t care about why you’re here,” Billy said shrugging. “As long as what you tell me checks out, I’ll take it.”

Vane studied him for a long moment. Long enough for Abigail to feel the need to shift in her seat. Slowly, Vane inhaled and nodded.

“Nassau Holdings,” he said. “That’s where you’ll find what you’re looking for.”

Billy stared at him for a moment, then said, “That’s it?”

“Your girl knows how to research,” Vane said. “You don’t need anymore from me than that to nail them to the wall.”

“But you loved her—” Abigail pressed her lips together, as Vane looked at her.

“I did. Once upon a time,” Vane said as he got to his feet. “But there’s a line and she’s crossing it. She might not approve of it, but she’s doing it.” He shook his head. “I’m not innocent, far from it. But there’s a limit to what I’ll do.” He looked at Bones. “Don’t follow me. I’m not throwing myself on some sword and I’m not testifying against her, but I’ll be damned if I won’t try to stop them from destroying her from the inside out.”

With that, Vane turned and was gone.

Abigail stared after him and turned to Billy who furrowed his brow and rubbed his chin.

“Huh,” was all he said.

“What?” she asked. “I mean… What was that?”

“That was a man giving up the woman he loves for her own good,” Billy said getting to his feet and guiding Abigail to the door.

“Is that what that was?” she asked. “Well, I doubt she’s going to thank him for it.”

When they were back in Billy’s car and headed back to Abigail’s flat, Abigail started looking up things on her phone.

“Right,” she said scrolling. “Nothing obvious on the web about Nassau Holdings, which is hardly a surprise. And they aren’t listed on Companies House.”

“You have the link to Companies House saved on your phone?” Billy asked, his grin illuminated by the passing streetlights.

“They have an app, actually,” Abigail said.

“You have their app?”

“Don’t judge,” she laughed. “Like you don’t have an app for all your policeman things.”

“’Policeman things’?” he repeated chuckling.

“Oh, hush,” she said shaking her head and tapping quickly on her phone. “I’ve asked Miranda to get us a warrant to deepen our search into the Guthrie accounts. Hopefully, I’ll make some headway tomorrow.”

She sighed.

“You’re dying to go into the office, aren’t you?” Billy asked as he pulled up outside Abigail’s building.

“Little bit,” she said turning her head to look at him as he turned off the engine. “Aren’t you?”

He rested his head against the headrest and nodded as he looked at her. “Gates is always after me to stop taking work home with me.”

“Miranda tells me the same thing,” she replied smiling a little. “It’s hard, though. What we do…it’s so compelling and fascinating.”

“Yeah,” he said reaching out his hand to trace the curve of her cheek. “So are you.” He winced. “Christ, that was cheesy, wasn’t it? Sorry.”

“Very cheesy,” she said grinning at him. “But not unwelcome.”

“Good,” he said leaning forward. “There’s more where that came from, Miss Ashe.”

“I’ll consider myself forewarned,” she murmured before his lips met hers for a long, lazy kiss.

After several long moments, with his forehead pressed to hers and breathing heavily, he said, “We should go inside.”

“I know,” she said. “I’ve just never made out in a car before. It’s sort of a novel experience.”

Billy made a noise low in his throat and pressed his lips to hers again.

Eventually, they made it out of the car and upstairs to Abigail’s flat. Billy dropped his gym bag by the couch.

“Would you mind, ah, if I used your shower?” he asked rubbing the back of his head. “I smell like interrogation room with a heavy dose of lager now.”

“Not at all,” Abigail said smiling as she went to her linen closet to grab a towel. “And I think I have shampoo that might be more to your liking than what’s in the shower.”

Billy followed her into the bathroom and glanced at the shower. “I don’t mind a bit of Lush product, you know.” He picked up the little black refillable Lush pot and said, “Especially one that might make me smell and feel like a mermaid.”

“Suit yourself,” Abigail said laughing. “But here’s some Pantene, just in case.”

“Thanks,” he said before kissing her forehead. 

“I’m, just, going,” she said as she walked backwards out of her bathroom, very aware that he was about to become very naked in her shower. She closed the door behind her and breathed out slowly before pressing the backs of her hands to her heated cheeks.

She heard the shower start up and she closed her eyes, taking a moment to picture him under the spray. Then she shook her head and laughing a little to herself, she went back into the living room to check on her searches and add some new parameters.

Billy emerged from her bathroom ten minutes later wearing gym shorts and a black tank and smelling of Lush; she grinned at him.

“Couldn’t resist the call of the mermaid?” she asked.

“Don’t mock,” he said coming to sit beside her. “Spent a good portion of my childhood wanting to be a sailor.”

“Really?”

“Nearly joined the Navy at one point, but then I realized that the Navy wasn’t exactly Pirates of the Caribbean,” he said looking over her shoulder at her research. “So I joined the Met instead.”

“I can picture it,” she said looking him over. “High up in the rigging of a tall ship somewhere in the Caribbean.”

He grinned. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she said smiling back.

“Who knows,” he said leaning back on the couch, his arm stretched out behind her. “Maybe I’ll take one of those things called a holiday and try it out.”

“Holiday? What’s that?” she asked.

Billy laughed. “Find anything?”

“No, nothing,” she said. “But I’m not surprised. If this is some kind of shell company or tax haven, it’s not going to be obvious.” She paused. “Why did he tell us about this?”

“You heard him. She’s crossed a line,” he said.

“A line that a career criminal won’t cross himself?” Abigail asked turning to look at him.

Billy shrugged. “Man’s got to have a code.”

She stared at him. “Did you honestly just quote _The Wire_ to me?”

“Gotta lean into the copper cliché every now and then, you know,” he said.

Abigail shook her head. “Wonder what Charles Vane’s line is. The one he won’t cross but Eleanor will. Of course, maybe she doesn’t know she’s crossing it, which is where the whole ‘saving her from herself’ mentality is coming from.”

“Thing is, we find out they’re breaking even a fraction of the fraud laws we suspect them of, they’re going to jail,” Billy said. “I suspect this line goes beyond mere fraud.”

“Such as?” Abigail asked.

Billy frowned. “It’s only supposition, but rumor has it, of all the criminal enterprises available, the one Charles Vane won’t touch is human trafficking.”

“No,” Abigail breathed. “Eleanor wouldn’t ever be involved in something like that, I won’t believe it.”

“Like you just said, she may not know she’s involved in it,” Billy said.

Abigail mused over that while Billy grabbed his phone and ran some checks. She turned back to her laptop and saw an email from Miranda okaying the request for a warrant and that she’d contact a judge first thing. Miranda concluded her email with the order for Abigail to get some rest and approach things fresh in the morning.

“Miranda just told me to go to bed,” Abigail said.

“It’s not bad advice,” Billy said lowering his phone. “Do you have an extra pillow?”

Abigail looked at him. 

“For the couch,” he added, and were his cheeks reddening?

“You don’t have to sleep on the couch,” Abigail said, suddenly unable to meet his eyes and her cheeks were definitely reddening.

“I don’t?” 

Abigail looked up and he grinned a little, and she couldn’t help herself and just rolled her eyes.

“Bones, just get in my bed,” she said getting to her feet.

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” he said standing.

A quarter of an hour later found Abigail curled up on her side in her bed, teeth brushed and wearing her usual sleepwear of a red spaghetti strap top and sleep shorts. Her alarm was set on her phone that was charging on her bedside table next to her notepad and a glass of water. The lights were off and the room was illuminated through a small crack in the curtains by the streetlamps outside. The only thing that made tonight different from any other night was the fact that Billy was curled up behind her, his arm fitted around her waist and his head just above hers on the pillow.

“Thanks for letting me sleep here,” he murmured.

“I don’t think you would have actually fit on the couch,” she murmured back, her hand curling around his as she curled up closer to him.

“Probably not,” he said pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “All the same.” He breathed in. “And, uh, just because I’m in your bed, you know that doesn’t mean anything has to happen? I’m just... God, Abigail, it’s just good to be here with you.”

She smiled. “I know what you mean.”

Abigail fully expected to lie awake for ages, but before she knew it, she was fast asleep.

* * *

Abigail woke slowly to the sound of the early city buses outside her window and the wonderful weight of Billy’s arm still around her mid-section and the warmth of his body behind her. Smiling to herself she reached over and tapped her phone to check the time and sighed when the screen lit up.

“What time is it?” Billy muttered into the top of her head curling just that much closer to her, his hand flattening against her stomach.

“Six-fifteen,” she said pulling her hand back to settle on top of his and turning her head slightly. “My alarm is set to go off in fifteen minutes.”

“Mmm.” Billy nuzzled her temple and pressed a kiss to her skin. “Plenty of time, then.”

“Time for what?” Abigail whispered turning her head just as Billy found her lips with his. 

They kissed lazily, just brushing their lips against the other’s, until one of them, and Abigail was fairly sure it was her, parted their lips and their kisses deepened. 

Billy’s hand slid up her stomach, over her top and cupped her breast.

Abigail sighed into his mouth and arched into his touch. His thumb brushed over her nipple and she rocked her hips back into his. He groaned when her bottom ground against his cock.

“Christ, Abigail,” he murmured as he moved his mouth down the length of her throat.

Abigail gasped as he rubbed his thumb over her nipple again and again. They moved against each other and Billy’s mouth covered Abigail’s as they kissed. As the heat between them rose, the duvet was kicked off and their legs entwined.

Billy took the hand that cupped her breast and took ahold of Abigail’s hand. He slid their joined hands down her front and stopped just above the waistband to her sleep shorts. Stopping their kiss, Abigail glanced down at their hands and then over her shoulder to meet Billy’s eyes. His lips were parted and he held her gaze as he slipped their hands under her shorts and then beneath her knickers.

“Show me,” Billy said, his voice rough and tight with need. “Show me how to touch you. Abigail.”

“Oh,” Abigail breathed as he guided both their hands between her thighs. His fingers rested just atop hers as they brushed through her curls to where she ached, wet and warm.

“Please,” Billy said brushing his lips over hers. “Show me what you like.” 

No one, _no one_ , had ever done this. She’d never felt so completely undone in her life and she had to close her eyes to the intensity that was Billy’s gaze.

“Show me,” he whispered again and she moved his fingers to where she ached the most.

Her eyes closed, her breath hitched at the feel of his large, roughened fingers against her folds. She guided him and set up a steady rhythm of circles over her folds and when he brushed up against her clit, she cried out into his mouth.

“Oh, God,” she said, her eyes flying open.

“Like that?” he asked watching her face as his fingers moved over her.

“Yes,” she nodded. “Don’t stop, just like that, please.”

“I won’t,” he said kissing her. “I won’t stop. You feel so good, Abigail. That’s it.”

Mouths pressed together, sharing breaths, and without any direction from her brain, her body simply following a desperate impulse, Abigail rocked against Billy’s fingers, hers just above. Higher and higher, her climax approached and she knew, she simply _knew_ , it was going to be a tidal wave, stronger and more intense than anything she’d ever felt before. 

“Billy,” she said into his mouth. “I’m…”

“Yeah,” he said as his fingers made smaller, tighter circles around where she needed the pressure most. “Like that?”

“Yes, yes. Oh, God,” she said as her free hand grabbed at the bedsheet beneath them.

“That’s it, sweetheart,” he said. “You’re so fucking beautiful, Abigail. Show me, please, show me.”

His fingers hit her perfectly and for a moment, the world disappeared and froze. Then the tidal wave struck and she shuddered as her orgasm washed over her, sweet and hot and powerful.

As she came back to herself, she met Billy’s heated and appreciative gaze.

“Gorgeous,” he murmured pressing a kiss to her lips. “All right?”

She nodded. “Mmm. Very all right. So all right, my ears are ringing.”

“Think that’s your alarm, actually,” he said grinning.

“Oh.” She blinked and then looked over at her phone cheerfully trilling away. “Oh, hush.”

She turned it off and sighed as Billy kissed her neck. Smiling, she turned around to face him and glanced down where his cock rested very hard against her belly.

“It’s fine,” Billy said pulling her close. “I know we need to get going. I can deal with it.”

“Are you sure?” she asked curling her leg around his hip, rocking against him. 

He groaned and closed his eyes, thrusting minutely against her.

“After all,” she said sliding her hand down his front. “I just hit snooze. We have at least five minutes.”

“Plenty of time,” Billy said covering her mouth with his.

* * *

Later, Abigail would be grateful for taking the time to hit snooze an additional three times, because it was a good three days before they saw each other again.


End file.
